


Opening Up

by InterstellarVagabond



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-01-22
Packaged: 2018-09-19 04:04:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9417752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InterstellarVagabond/pseuds/InterstellarVagabond
Summary: A hidden tattoo, insecurity, a confession, and more. What starts as the usual banter between two paladins who seem to hate each other becomes an intimate conversation.





	

Lance didn't wake up looking instantly refreshed, it was a process. A very important and detailed process that he liked to be able to perform every day.   
So when he stumbled into the shower, bleary eyed with fatigue, and found that there was no water he was more than a little frustrated.

"Coran what gives?" he shouted when he found the altean fiddling around in a wall compartment just outside his door. 

"Oh! Sorry to wake you Lance, it seems we're having some problems with the pipes but never fear! The Coranic is here to save the day!" Coran twisted one end of his mustache with a grin. "I'll have the water back in..." something inside the compartment squealed like a kettle that was ready for tea and Coran was sprayed in the face with a torrent of water. He gurgled slightly as he tried to push the water back with his hands and managed to twist something that turned the water off. 

"In the meantime, while the pipes on this side of the quarters are broken, the other side is just fine so Keith's shower should be working," Coran said, wiping water off his face. "Why not pop in and use his?"

"What?" Lance practically squeaked. "I can't use Keith's shower! Coran just tell me you can fix the water in the next hour."

"Even if I knew how long one of your silly Earth hours was I couldn't promise you that," Coran shook his head.

Lance weighed his options. On one hand he'd spent the whole day yesterday training and went to bed exhausted and covered in sweat, looking forward to the hot shower that would relax his muscles and cleanse his skin the next morning. On the other hand Keith was a major douche and he didn't really feel like being naked around him. Before Lance had a chance to decide the door to Keith's room opened and Pidge walked out in a bathrobe with a towel wrapped around her head. 

"Shower's free," she said to Lance. 

"Since when do you shower regularly?" Lance asked.

"Since Coran told me the water could be down for a few days," Pidge said. "My limit is three days, maybe three and a half with the right deodorant."

"I'll get my stuff," Lance groaned. 

When Keith answered the door Lance tried to look anywhere but his eyes. 

"I'm here to use the shower," he said, staring over Keith's shoulder.

"You're not going to ask?" Keith raised an eyebrow.

"Well, Coran said I could and it's more his castle than yours," Lance said. 

Keith rolled his eyes and moved to the side so Lance could come in. The blue paladin had a towel wrapped around his hips and was carrying an armful of soaps, shampoos, and other cosmetic products. Keith was looking at them with half interest when he suddenly noticed something on Lance's back. 

"Is that...a tattoo?" he asked.

Lance visibly froze like a cat presented with a foe and turned bright red as he turned around. "Dude you checking me out or something? Just...you know that's none of your...just....whatever man!"

"Do you ever stop acting like an idiot?" Keith said. "It was just a question."

Lance blushed further and sighed. "Okay look, you can't tell anyone. I mean that, Keith. Not a soul. Especially not Pidge."

Keith's eyes widened for a moment, surprised that Lance was about to open up to him. While a part of him was still tempted to react with anger, he just nodded in response. Lance groaned and turned around so Keith could see the tattoo that rested just above where Lance's hips and back met. It was a triquetra in black ink, a simple design. 

"I got it before I joined the garrison," Lance said. "It's supposed to...protect you."

"It's kind of...nice," Keith said. "I was expecting something...trashier."

"Just don't tell anyone," Lance huffed. "I'm already the guy that got his foot stuck in the robot door thingie during training, I don't want everyone knowing I'm also the guy who got a superstitious tattoo."

"I won't tell anyone," Keith promised.

"Alright then..." Lance said. "...good. Cause if you tell anyone I'll find something embarassing about you too!"

"I just said I wouldn't tell," Keith said, his brow furrowing with annoyance. 

"I just...I can't be anymore of a laughingstock than I already am," Lance said. 

"Wait, what?" Keith looked at Lance, saw that his jaw was set and his eyes were darting here and there. He looked...scared. He looked upset. "What do you mean a laughingstock?"

"C'mon I know I'm the weak link of Voltron," Lance said, almost tearfully. "Man, Hunk pukes all over his lion and even he does better than me."

"Voltron doesn't have a weak link, we're a good team," Keith said. "If there was any weak link...wouldn't it be me?"

"Now that makes even less sense," Lance chuckled. "You may be an arrogant douche, but you have a good reason for it. You're Keith the number one pilot fighter guy who kicks ass ten ways to Sunday."

"But I'm also galra." Keith looked at his hand as if he half expected it to sprout purple fur and claws. 

"So?" Lance said. 

"So I'm the enemy, aren't I?" Keith's voice went up in volume and emotion. 

"Dude, galra have had lions before right? Or like at least one did," Lance said. "And you're not the enemy because you're not fighting us. You're a good guy. Being galra doesn't change that, it just makes you more angsty and 'bleh my backstory is too tragic for you'."

"It's not a joke," Keith grunted.

"Sorry, I'm not trying to joke about it," Lance said, putting his hands up in a gesture of apology. Keith was surprised again by Lance's behavior, he thought for sure everything was a joke where he was involved. "Seriously, dude, I don't think being galra makes you a bad guy. It doesn't change anything about you except your family tree."

"...you mean that?" Keith asked. 

"Of course." Lance nodded.

"When I told everyone...you never had any questions or said anything," Keith said. "...you really are okay with it."

"...can I take my shower now?" Lance blushed and fidgeted with his hair. Keith nodded, turning away thoughtfully as Lance moved towards the bathroom door. Before Lance left he called out to him.

"Lance. You aren't the weak link, okay?" he said. "You bring a lot to the team. You keep us calm and happy with your jokes, you have excellent aim, quick thinking, and a strong bond with your lion."

Lance stood in front of the bathroom door, and for a moment Keith thought he'd overstepped and now Lance was going to yell at him. Instead, Lance dropped his many shower supplies and walked back to Keith with a bright red face. 

_oh no he's not going to yell at me he's going to hit me_ Keith thought just before Lance grabbed Keith's face and kissed him. Keith was so surprised he back stepped into the bed and fell backwards onto it. Lance came toppling with him and the two tangled their limbs as they tried to find balance. Lance was about to pull away but Keith found himself pulling him closer and kissing him back. Keith parted Lance's lips with his tongue and the affectionate gestures grew more hungry. It wasn't until Lance's towel fell from his hips that the two stopped to realize what they were doing. 

Lance was blushing bright red, and Keith was sure he was too. Lance hurried to gather his towel around himself again and coughed a few times as if to draw attention to his face rather than what he was currently covering with the towel.

"With the water down, we'll need to conserve hot water so no one gets stuck with a cold shower," Keith said suddenly. He had a straight face, the face of someone making a logical argument rather than a flimsy flirt. 

"...that makes sense," Lance said.

"So, it makes sense that I should join you in the shower," Keith said. "If that's not...too fast."

"It doesn't have to go fast, we can just shower together," Lance said, biting his lower lip. "That mullet defintely needs a shampoo I'm sure. We can save...everything else for later."

Keith stood up and started undressing as fast as he could while Lance started up the shower.


End file.
